Philadelphia 76ers Notebook: Bynum a no-show for team photo

PHILADELPHIA — In the hours before tipoff, the 76ers gathered at Wells Fargo Center Wednesday for their team photo. Memories of the 2012-13 season, when it expires in four games, will be few and far between — except for that team photo.

Speaking of that, Sixers coach Doug Collins was asked whether he holds on to such photographic keepsakes from his playing days.

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “They might be somewhere, but there are only a few things at my house. Usually it’s things that are a little different than that.”

When this group breaks up in less than a week, and heads its separate ways in the offseason, a few of the guys will never see the inside of the Sixers’ locker room again.

One of them very well could be Andrew Bynum, who, like Jason Richardson, skipped the photo and rehabbed his surgically repaired knees.

“Might’ve seen the last of the big guy,” one player said, when asked whether Bynum was present for photo day.

Bynum, who hasn’t spoken to reporters in more than a month, missed the entire season with a series of knee setbacks. His contract, which paid him $16.5 million, expires this summer. A jersey hung in Bynum’s locker, which seemed like a strong indicator that he might have made the trip from New York, where he’s doing his rehab, for a reunion with the Sixers teammates with whom he never shared the court.

That wasn’t the case.•••

As it stands, Evan Turner and Spencer Hawes are in line to play all 82 games.

In a season of unfulfilled expectations, that’s something the 76ers can hang their hat upon. Collins calls it a “badge of honor,” though he admits he might have heard that somewhere.

“I think I stole that ‘badge of honor’ from Kobe (Bryant),” Collins said, “when he said how important it is to play all 82, every night. I think I relayed it to you (about) when I was coaching Washington. In my second year there, the only guy to play all 82 games that year was Michael Jordan, and he was 41, 42 years old.

“There’s no greater compliment that a player can give his coach than to say, ‘I want to play all 82 and be there.’ They say the first thing to do to be effective is to show up every night and go to work.”

••• NOTES: Julius Erving, Moses Malone and others from the 1982-83 championship team are expected to be in South Philly Sunday afternoon, when the team honors the 30th anniversary of the Sixers’ last title team. All fans heading to the game, the final home date of the Sixers’ season, will receive a commemorative poster. … It’s green week around the NBA, which might explain why guys like Dorell Wright were wearing atrocious fluorescent green sneakers with their red, white and blue color-schemed uniforms. … Justin Holiday, who began his Sixers tenure with four consecutive road games, made his home debut. But according to his brother, Jrue, only Justin’s girlfriend and Jrue’s fiancee were in attendance. “Mom and Dad stayed home for this one,” Jrue said. The Holidays were in Charlotte last week for Justin’s debut.